"In Space, Zombies Would..." Topic

…freeze solid. TMP link

But can they be thawed?

In the first TV season of iZombie, they were thawed out several times, if memory serves, and then they were good as new.

No matter how they try to give it a scientific spin, zombies are simply magical marvels of contradiction.

Heart doesn't pump and yet everything can move without oxygen to the cells. It must be killed by a shot or stab to the head, even though its brain is already liquified and there was already a piece of rebar going through its skull.

Like I said, magical.

Dan

In Game of Thrones, you have to burn them.

OK, getting off topic a bit here, but the burning thing …

In the Wearing the Cape series, vampires are paralyzed by being staked through the heart, but are OK when you pull it out. You have to burn them to kill them, but as one character speculates, grinding them up and feeding them to several wild bears would probably do it, but why mess with tradition?

Winston: "In Game of Thrones, you have to burn them."

In Walking Dead they still keep on moving and coming at you, even with their muscles and tendons burnt to a crisp, and with their eyes and brains boiled away.

Abandon all logic. Forget the usual one or two instances of obligatory suspension of disbelief … there are just way too many of those with zombies, even with zombies in the same one show or series. It's pointless trying to make sense of it. It's magic. Fantasy.

Dan
PS. And the most ridiculous thing, other than zombies and the huge number of films, shows and comic books about them, is how many characters in movies and shows act as though they've never heard of zombies. Now THAT'S really unbelievable!!!

Discussing the scientific merits or plausibility of zombies is like discussing the plausabilitity of werewolves, vampires, the force, or magical spells. It's fantasy, pure and simple. And if you are planning for the possible occurrence of any of these things, it's like picking up a (💩) from the clean end; it ain't going to happen.

But that doesn't mean gaming star wars or zombies or other fantasy/science-fantasy games can't be fun.

"What happens to zombies in a zero-atmosphere, zero-gravity environment?"

Usually the first and last time you see them is just before they impact the cockpit windows of your orbiting space craft… ;-)

I think that some technobabble involving nanites could be applied to create more plausible zombies.

The original zombies, from the Haitian voodoo culture, were not dead. They and everyone around them believed that they were dead, but able to act somewhat like living people, so the story of living dead people arose.

In fact, these real zombies were drugged and convinced that they were dead. There is an interesting discussion in the 1985 book The Serpent and The Rainbow by Wade Davis.

Real zombies can of course be killed just like any living person can be killed.

Zombies have to be shot in the head (traditional storyline), or decapitated. Now Zombies have to be burnt?
Uggh, that's my one big erk with Unhollywood, they cant follow their own rules for undead (zombies, vampires, etc).

I recall when vampires could never venture out in the sun, to allow more storylines, it became, "ok they can be out 'just before sun up or down' (dusk).
As *emckinney mentioned, there was also a modern vampire series (cant recall title at the moment) the main character was a P.I. an vampire. Stakes only paralyzed vamps, and they could be in daylight for very brief times. Oh yes, IIRC crosses had no effect on them.

Does anyone remember the days when zombies only staggered/shambled along, now some could join track teams.
Hollywood, please find one set of rules and stick to it.

That would defeat the purpose of fiction, for the most part.

"Heart doesn't pump and yet everything can move without oxygen to the cells. "

Unless the zombie virus is taking the oxygen from the air and supplying it to the cells… ;-)

My 'theory' on why zombies eat fresh flesh is that the virus needs a supply of juiciness to make more virus. Since the virus is all throughout the zombie, the virus basically replaces the nervous system (all being controlled in/by the 'brain'.) Also makes a neat explanation about why a bite can turn you into a z really fast. :-o
Don't know how that would work for non-virus zombies, though… ;-)

An added thought came to mind.
As to the possibility of anything close to a zombie like apocalypse, would be a Biological or Chemical warfare agent being used on a civilian population. Resulting not in the reanimating of the dead, but causing extreme irrational and violent behavior in those that were contaminated.

Not only causing mass panic in the general population, but a great demand on all local medical, law enforcement and even military resources to contain the situation.
(on the -good side- for lack of better term) since they aren't 'dead' they could be simply killed by any method for killing a human. However the virus they carried could be transmitted too those not directly exposed by being bitten, or by coming in contact with any open wound of an exposed victim, 'before' the effects became known.

And after several days resulting in death.

"In Space, Zombies Would…"

…hear me scream??? Just asking.

This thread made me recall this Jack Thurston painting.

Dan

I just watched 'Cargo' on Netflix.

Well done, but very depressing.

In that one, the Zombies had typical 'bite and kill everything' behavior, but they could be killed relatively easily with a bullet or a spear.

No indication that they were really anything more than rabid, feral humans.